CRICHTON: Hold that thought and be ready to duck. (the battle rages on in the den)

AERYN:(on comms) Who's taking fire?

CRICHTON: Who isn't? (while the conversation goes on, the firefight picks up its pace)

AERYN: You all right?

CRICHTON: Other than being shot at by the Electric Mayhem, I'm fantastic!

(cut to one of Moya's corridors, where Caa'ta is escorting Pikal to a safer place: while Caa'ta looks around the bend of the corridors, Pikal moves forward and is intercepted by his companion)

CAA'TA: You must stay hidden.

PIKAL: And you?

CAA'TA: Your sensitivity is of much more value when we are meeting our ancestors. It is my function to assure your safe arrival.

PIKAL: But...

CAA'TA: There is no time to argue.

(reluctantly, Pikal remains hidden behind one of Moya's "ribs", while Caa'ta resumes his patrol - cut to another corridor, where Chiana and Sikozu are looking for intruders)

CHIANA: Three of them heading parallel to us. (the wall appears transparent to her eyes and she sees the three men and the energy core of their weapons)

SIKOZU: You can see that?

CHIANA: I can with my new eyes.

(cut to Aeryn and D'Argo lying in ambush in another corridor: D'Argo sniffs the air for the Tregans' scent and Aeryn announces)

AERYN: Two.

(as soon as the Tregans advance, they are hit by the two Moyans' combined fire, and quickly dispatched.
Cut back to the two Eidelons: Caa'ta engages the Tregans, killing one of them, but is mortally wounded and falls to the floor, to Pikal's dismay.

Meanwhile, in Pilot's den, John and Scorpius are still under attack: some of the fire passes dangerously close to Pilot)

CRICHTON: Son of a bitch! Pilot, stay down!

PILOT: I can't!

CRICHTON: We have to get outta here before Pilot gets shot.

SCORPIUS: What we need is the release transmitter.

CRICHTON: Where is that?

SCORPIUS: Over there with the head Tregan. (there is green-glowing device on his belt)

CRICHTON: Fine. (addressing the attackers) Surrender or die! (the only answer is more shots in their direction)

SCORPIUS: You enjoy this, don't you, Crichton?

(cut to two Tregans who are dragging a shocked Pikal with them)

TREGAN 1: You know this species?

TREGAN 2:(shakes head)

TREGAN 1: Then dead is okay.

(as they prepare to kill the prisoner, Chiana and Sikozu drop on them, emitting some sort of battle cry, and engage a heated battle.
Cut back to Aeryn and D'Argo)

D'ARGO: You never struck me as the type who would want children. (Aeryn shots him a significant look.) You either, huh? (a Tregan shoots at them from around the bend, and they kill him)

AERYN: He wants it so badly. So I do.

D'ARGO: You'll come around when you see the little guy in person.

AERYN: I hope so.

(cut back to Chiana and Sikozu, who manage to kill their opponents, then again to Pilot's den)

CRICHTON:(to Scorpius) All right, lover boy, get ready to cover me. (he emerges from cover behind Pilot's console and while Scorpius starts firing, John pivots around and starts shooting above their heads, killing one of the Tregans; they can now concentrate on the remaining two attackers, and manage to kill them - the Peacekeeper soldier drops to the ground, while the last Tregan falls in the depths of the den)

SCORPIUS: Are you having fun yet, John?

CRICHTON:(picking himself up from the passageway where he's landed) You call that covering fire?

PILOT: No more Tregans aboard.

(the camera cuts in sequence to the various places on Moya where the others are)

AERYN: That's good news, Pilot.

PILOT: However, they're still reeling us in.

SCORPIUS: Because we can't release the harpoons.

CHIANA: Why not?

CRICHTON: 'Cause somebody sent the transmitter down the abyss. (looks meaningfully toward Scorpius)

SIKOZU: This transmitter, what does it look like?

SCORPIUS: A star-shaped medallion.

(Sikozu inspects the body of one of their victims, and finds another transmitter - cut to space, where the harpoons are being detached from Moya's hull, while the Leviathan runs away from the attacking ship)

AERYN: Pilot? (everyone is running toward Command)

PILOT: All lines disengaged. We're free!

(Moya takes fire from the Tregan ship)

CRICHTON: Ooh! Guess they figured out their captain's dead.

AERYN: Rygel?

D'ARGO: Pilot, can Moya starburst?

PILOT: She will try.

CRICHTON: That's our girl. (Moya starbursts away)

AERYN:(looking worried, while she searches for the Dominar) This is not good. Rygel? Rygel?

RYGEL:(coming up from behind some crates) Don't get your knickers in a twist. The baby is all right.

(cut to Command, where John is working on emergency repairs with the help of 1812, who's playing the overture he's been named for)

PILOT: (on comms) I'm terribly upset I failed to detect the Tregans.

CRICHTON: 1812, pipe down.

PILOT: I was so preoccupied with other duties, they snuck up on us.

D'ARGO: That's all right, Pilot. You're a few thousand mistakes behind the rest of us.

CRICHTON: Hey, Pilot, how much is this gonna slow us down getting to Arnessk?

PILOT: The answer, Commander, is not at all. (John looks at the viewscreen and sees they are in orbit around Arnessk)

D'ARGO: Excellent.

(cut to Arnessk: one of Moya's pods is landing - shortly thereafter John walks among the trees, trying to get his bearings)

CRICHTON: Okay, I'm lost. (he keeps walking, then sucks on a finger, exposing it to the wind and choosing a direction - he does not notice that an indistinct figure moves among the trees, shadowing him. Finally he comes to what looks like the installation where Instructor Vella and her people were working, and he corrects himself) Not lost. (moving forward - the mysterious, red-haired figure still at his heels - he notices a cord tied between two trees: instantly, some sort of crossbow shots an arrow at the cord and the trap springs, catching him by the ankles; the mysterious follower, none other than Jool, jumps on him)

JOOL:(placing a knife at his throat) Your business?

CRICHTON:(wheezing) Hiya, Jool.

JOOL:(turning him and getting a good look at him) You. (she then proceeds to straddle him)

CRICHTON: Me. Crichton. You?

JOOL: Crichton! (she kisses him passionately)

CRICHTON: You are crazy.

JOOL: I knew you wouldn't forget me. The more we were apart, the more I knew you'd realize that you are meant to be with...(while John tries to disentangle himself from her, Aeryn and Rygel reach the two. Jool looks up in surprise, and embarassment) Aeryn.

AERYN:(looks coolly amused) Jool.

RYGEL: Get your own fantasy, Driblox, they're having my baby.

JOOL:(to John, looking nonplussed) Baby? (John grins)

(cut to the temple: the party, led by Jool, enters a great chamber, dominated by a pool of blue water - several Eidelons are scattered, in meditative stance, around the room)

JOOL: And it goes without saying you show deference and respect.

CRICHTON: Absolutely.

JOOL: Please, don't embarrass me.

(looking around, John whistles loudly, and the sound echoes in the hall: we see, at top of a flight of stairs, Hierarch Yondalao, the leader of the community)

YONDALAO: Excellent acoustics, are they not? Perhaps you'd care
to lead us in prayer.

JOOL: Apologies, Hierarch Yondalao. I was explaining to them...

YONDALAO:(he descends from the steps) So you are the pilgrims who purport to be our heirs?

CRICHTON: Not us. Just him. (to Pikal) Go.

YONDALAO: We understood all of our descendants to be gone.

PIKAL: Though we trace ourselves to your lineage, my people have lost the ability, but not the desire to influence peace.

YONDALAO: Troubling. And exhilarating. I shall confer with the other conciliators and notify you when the matter can be assessed. (he retraces his steps)

SCORPIUS:(whispering to John) I told you this was a waste of time. Myths are rarely satisfying upon examination. (John motions him to be silent)

JOOL: Hierarch, please. You know me. I know these travelers. They are honorable. Why do you send them away?

YONDALAO: I do not. I simply require time to examine the issue.

STARK: But, but with great respect. What is there to examine? Pikal is an Eidelon like you.

YONDALAO: We have awakened from 12,000 cycles of sleep. What pertinence can we have to your galaxy now?

STARK:(falling to his knees in front of Yondalao, and looking very agitated) But the war. The deaths, the slaughters!

AERYN: We apologize for invading your sanctuary. And we understand you have reason for caution. But what could be more pertinent in this time, or any, than the ability to inspire peace?

YONDALAO: Even if he's Eidelon, how can this one supplicant help that cause?

AERYN: You are few here, and Pikal's people are many. With your instruction, they could become a great force for peace.

YONDALAO: Though the Peacekeeper provides sound counsel, I still sustain reservations
that must be meditated upon. (to Aeryn) Peacekeepers, clear the temple.

CRICHTON: Can you believe this? Somebody wants us to be Peacekeepers. (while talking to Aeryn he extracts the cartridge from his gun, licks it and then replaces it, accidentally firing a shot)

YONDALAO:(addressing him with a severe look) Are you an assassin?

CRICHTON:(he looks disgusted with himself) No! I'm just the guy without a brain. (he starts walking around their little party, indicating each of them in turn - first Stark) The Lion here would like some courage. (then Scorpius) Tin Man, he needs a heart. (Rygel's turn) Toto here just wants an easy birth. (and then Pikal's) And Dorothy here, she is just looking for a way home. (he drags an unresisting Pikal right in front of Yondalao) Now we're not gonna be here tomorrow so I suggest you take a long hard look at our broomstick. He is your heir! An Eidelon. (Yondalao traces his finger along Pikal's face ridges, a look of wonder on his face)

(some time later, the Eidelons are arranged around the pool, at the center of which stands Pikal: Yondalao enters the water behind him, and starts walking around the younger man)

YONDALAO: As youths, we open our faces to the universe, absorbing the joy and anguish all creatures feel. Then upon maturation, we step to the altar to receive Hora Dalay: The ability to encourage rationality and tranquility in others. The capacity to influence others toward peace carries great responsibility. Do you accept this burden for the rest of your days? (Pikal signals his acceptance with a faint smile)

(cut to the exterior of the temple)

AERYN: It's going to work. With training, Pikal and his kind, should be able to stop the war.

CRICHTON: No wormholes.

AERYN:(smiling up at him) Exactly what I was thinking, John Crichton. (a grumpy Rygel comes into view)

RYGEL: Can we go back to Moya now? I'm starving.

AERYN: In a microt. Go and get Stark. (Rygel leaves)

CRICHTON: Is it just me or is he getting bigger?

AERYN: It's a geometric pregnancy.

CRICHTON: Please tell me that means we're gonna have a mathematician.

AERYN: A soldier more likely. But we will be having it sooner than you think.

CRICHTON: How sooner?

AERYN: With genetic modifications put into someone born into a battle unit like myself, essentially we're going to be parents in a matter of solar days.

CRICHTON:(stunned, almost speechless) Days? We don't have a name.

AERYN: Already picked one.

CRICHTON: What?

AERYN:(strangled sound)

CRICHTON: Excuse me?

AERYN: Do you not like it?

CRICHTON: Uh, boy or girl?

AERYN: Either. It works for both.

CRICHTON: You just made a joke.

AERYN: Soldiers don't have a sense of humor, John. (she starts to leave, and John calls after her)

CRICHTON: You better have my dinner ready when I get back on that ship now.

(Aeryn walks away, raising her pulse pistol in the air as an answer - he smiles in amusement)

(cut to space, the Peacekeepers' fleet - then to the interior of Maryk's carrier)

MARYK:(reading a report) Is there nothing they can do? Then order retreat from Alentro Quadrant. Have Commander Spreddic regroup in defense of our nearest outposts.

PK OFFICER: Sir, how have the Scarrans moved so quickly through our forward positions? (while they talk, we see Grayza's figure in the background: she is listening intently)

MARYK: Because they have been planning this for many cycles, Lieutenant.

PK OFFICER: And you have a design to turn it around?

MARYK: Of course. In due time. (Grayza leaves, an unreadable expression on her face)

(cut to Moya, Aeryn is helping in removing the Tregans' harpoons)

PILOT: Thank you for your assistance, Aeryn. Independent verification of hull integrity is invaluable to Moya and me.

CRICHTON: Bad feeling. Jool, can you hear us? Get away from the temple. Now, Jool!

(the Scarran vessel launches a missile, which seems to be targeting Moya)

SIKOZU: The Scarrans have fired.

CRICHTON: Evasive!

PILOT: No time!

(the warhead passes very close to Moya, but continues on its course toward Arnessk)

CRICHTON: Son of a bitch. Not us.

AERYN: Jool!

(on the screen, the missile opens in a circle of lights which target the area of the temple, where a few seconds later an explosion blankets the area - Jool's image from the viewer disappears in a wash of static. Everyone looks dismayed, and Stark falls to his knees with a howl of pain; John closes the now useless contact, comforting Aeryn with a kiss on the top of her head)

SCARRAN VOICE: Crew of Leviathan, you must immediately abandon ship and surrender to the Scarran Imperial Forces. Noncompliance with this command will result in the immediate annihilation of your ship. Repeat, noncompliance with this command......

CHIANA: We're cursed.

SCARRAN VOICE: ...will result in the immediate annihilation of your ship.

CHIANA: Everything we touch.

PILOT: Prepare for emergency starburst!

(the message from the Scarran ship keeps repeating over comms, while Moya attempts to starburst: she is targeted by a shot from the Decimator which stops the starburst and creates havoc aboard the ship. Cut to a corridor, along which Aeryn is dragging a protesting Rygel on his throne-sled)

STALEEK: I find it troubling that Humans and Sebaceans can propagate together, and intriguing.

STARK: How could you know that he was pregnant with their child?

STALEEK: The same way I knew to find you here.

SIKOZU: A traitor.

STARK: But who?

SCORPIUS: Grunchlk.

STALEEK: (approaching Scorpius) Ah, they say one traitor can always recognize another. If you hadn't facilitated Crichton's earlier escape, there would be peace now.

SCORPIUS: With you the Supreme Ruler?

STALEEK: A position I know you dream of, Scorpius. (he removes Scorpius' cooling rods from his head and the hybrid hisses in pain) You, John Crichton, are alive for one reason only. I will have the wormhole technology you possess. If not, War Minister Ahkna will pleasure herself torturing the Hynerian and the abomination in his belly. You have one arn to decide. (he leaves the room)

SIKOZU:(trying to help Scorpius) Here, here.

AERYN: Options?

CRICHTON: Yondalao is not ready. They have Rygel and the sand is trickling though the hourglass.

AERYN: We can't give them wormhole weapons.

CRICHTON: They don't know that. And I can give them the middle finger.

AERYN: You don't know what you're doing.

CRICHTON: I never do.

SCORPIUS: You, give them nothing!

CRICHTON:(banging on the cell's door) Let's make a deal!

(cut to Lo'la: Chiana is examining the Decimator with her "special" sight and pointing at a screen where she indicates the ship's weak points)

CHIANA: One power source. Two compartments, forward and last. (xx???xx) More intense, and smaller. And here. That's it.

D'ARGO: Excellent. I'll be able to stop 'em cold with three perfect shots.

CHIANA: Why three? You usually slay me with just one.

D'ARGO:(smiles slightly, then he replies, trying to sound casual) Rygel's invited us to Hyneria. Thought I could do some work with my hands. Plant some prowsa fruit, make some wine.

CHIANA:(she smiles, but she's clearly uncomfortable) Oh.

(on the Decimator, John is brought before Staleek)

CRICHTON: Hey, Godzilla, let's get this over with.

STALEEK: You have something to give me?

CRICHTON: Yeah. I got something you don't get very often. The truth. I can't give you wormhole weapons.

STALEEK: Then you will die.

CRICHTON: You're asking for a kilo of pure wormhole technology which I don't have! But I can take you to a guy who does. (Staleek looks interested) In exchange, you give me Rygel. Undamaged, free and clear.

STALEEK: (hits John with his heat probe) Give me the coordinates!

CRICHTON: It doesn't work like that.

STALEEK: You are immune to the probing.

CRICHTON: 'Cause I always speak the truth. (Staleek stops the probe - John falls to the ground, then raises himself on his knees) Okay, here's how it works. We go in my module down a wormhole to the source of ultimate power. It's a two-seater. Me and one other. It's the only safe way to get there.

AHKNA: The emperor will never go alone with you in your craft! (she grabs him by the shoulder and lifts him up) I will accompany him, Your Eminence.

CRICHTON: Yes, always good to see who wears the britches in a relationship.

STALEEK: No! Set a course to rejoin the battle group at the water planet. We shall leave as soon as I return.

CRICHTON:(to Ahkna) It's a question of balls. The ball's in his court.

(cut to the cell: Sikozu is trying to repair the damage to Scorpius' cooling apparatus, while Yondalao keeps quizzing Stark. Aeryn approaches them, listening to the conversation)

YONDALAO: How would they react?

STARK:(pacing nervously) I see. If faced with such a moral choice, the Scarrans would still choose to slaughter innocents. A conundrum: How to tap into their morality. I must think. (he moves to the other side of the cell)

AERYN:(to Yondalao) Is there progress?

YONDALAO: A great deal. I will soon be able to influence their passions.

AERYN: Excellent. In the temple, you said, "Peacekeepers, do your duty." What did you mean?

YONDALAO: I had forgotten that you had forgotten. At the dawn of our period of usefulness, 27,000 cycles ago, we developed need of a guard, a race no one had quarrel with. A force to insure harmony prevailed once negotiations had finished.

AERYN: Peacekeepers. (she sits next to him)

YONDALAO: Apparently your forebears attempted to carry on once we vanished. However, lacking our mediation abilities, they kept peace the only way they could: At the muzzle of a weapon.

AERYN: And that's why they're hated.

YONDALAO: It wasn't such at the beginning. We took great care to choose a species no one had met before. We found your kind primitive, barely clothed. Far removed on the galaxy's outer spiral. Having brought some of you back, your evolution was accelerated with generous alterations until you became our trusted acolytes.

(cut to another chamber on the Decimator: Rygel is tied to some sort of vertical bed, and is moaning in pain: Ahkna enters)

AHKNA: (to Scarran nurse) The emperor wants this one maintained. However, I would consider it a personal favor should he die of explainable causes. (Rygel keep moaning, while the nurse approaches him with a wicked-looking instrument)

(cut to the Farscape One module: John is making adjustments to the controls)

STALEEK: I grow weary.

CRICHTON: We'll stop for coffee on the way back.

STALEEK: (placing a hand on John's shoulder) There is a problem?

CRICHTON: Take your hand off me.

(cut to the inside John's head: action swings back and forth from here to reality. Harvey and John are sitting inside a car, dressed as two crash-test dummies: Harvey lights cigarettes for both of them, and John throws them out of the window)

HARVEY: You know what you have to do, John.

CRICHTON: Yeah, I know exactly what I have to do.

HARVEY: Just crash the module. No more Staleek.

CRICHTON: No more Crichton. No more Aeryn. No more anyone. Do you think War Minister Psycho-Drama's gonna be a kindler, gentler soul?

CRICHTON:(to Staleek, back in realtime) Please take your hand off me. (back to Harvey) Get your hand off me. (back again to reality)

STALEEK: We shall return to my ship. There is no wormhole here.

CRICHTON: We're catching the 7:15 to Enlightenment. It's just a little late.

(on the Decimator, Aeryn is being escorted before Ahkna)

AHKNA: I have been informed you plot escape.

AERYN: We are prisoners with no weapons.

AHKNA: None here. But perhaps out there. (at her gesture, the cover from a viewscreen is lifted) I promise you. You will never be reunited with your baby.

AERYN: I'm sure your mother wished the same thing.

AHKNA: How brave you are. Ordinance Officer, fire! (a shot is fired in space, revealing the outline of Lo'la orbiting close to the Scarran ship) Fire! (the scene shifts to Lo'la's interior, torn by explosions)

AERYN:(trying to keep her cool, but clearly terrified for her friends) You can stop now. You've proved your point.

AHKNA: The Luxans are like Peacekeepers. Soon to be enslaved or dead. Fire. (Lo'la explodes in a ball of fire)

AERYN:(launching herself at Ahkna) You...Frelling...You! (Scarran soldiers take her away)

(cut to the cell)

STARK: Enshrine their souls, end their suffering and guide the passage of D'Argo and Chiana to their place of rest.

YONDALAO: Cannot a Luxan survive in space?

AERYN: Quarter arn. Maybe a little longer.

YONDALAO: Scarran brutality surprises me. They will be difficult to influence.

SCORPIUS: The Scarran blood that runs through my veins knows more than you'll ever know, Eidelon. The first scent of interference, you'll be as dead as D'Argo. And then the... (he stops, holding his head in pain)

SIKOZU: There is only one path out of this prison. We must fight our way out!

(cut to John's module: a wormhole is opening before it)

CRICHTON: Bingo.

STALEEK: This is the source of your knowledge?

CRICHTON: That and the back of cereal boxes. Cinch up your diaper, big boy. The first time is always the worst. (they enter the wormhole, spinning about along the tunnels)

STALEEK: This is normal?

CRICHTON: No. The module's overweighted. We got a big bubba in 2-B.

(once again the action cuts back and forth from reality to John's mind)

HARVEY: Last chance, John. Veer into the wall of the wormhole. It'll be over fast.

CRICHTON: Nope. Child's gonna have a father, Harv.

HARVEY: I hope it's a boy.

CRICHTON:Boy, girl, either is fine. Buckle up. (while the module travels through the wormhole, the car with John and Harvey crashes against a wall; suddenly we see John and Staleek in Einstein's realm, both of them lying on the snow) Check it out. I'm Rudolph the Red-nosed Reindeer. (Einstein appears)

EINSTEIN: You have violated our trust.

CRICHTON: He has my family.

EINSTEIN: Unimportant to the greater agenda.

CRICHTON: They are my greater agenda.

EINSTEIN: Why have you brought him here?

STALEEK: Who is this creature?

CRICHTON: You can call him Einstein. I suggest you do it nicely. (Staleek tries to strike Einstein with a probe, which is easily blocked) Staleek! (the Emperor tries again, and shouts in pain when Einstein stops him) Staleek, he can wrap time round his little finger. The hoo-doo voodoo is not gonna work.

STALEEK: Einstein, do you possess the knowledge of wormholes?

EINSTEIN: Yes.

STALEEK: Can these wormholes be made into weapons?

EINSTEIN: Yes.

STALEEK: Then you will give me that power!

EINSTEIN: No.

CRICHTON: Hang on. I can find a wormhole, and fly down one. Right?

EINSTEIN: With the rudimentary knowledge we have given you.

CRICHTON: Can I make a weapon?

EINSTEIN: You cannot.

CRICHTON: Why not?

EINSTEIN: Because no one should have that power.

CRICHTON: Exactly! Listen up. (he holds a fistful of snow in front of Staleek) This is your universe. (he crushes the snow inside his fist) This is your universe on wormholes. You mess with the natural order, you destroy multiple time lines.

STALEEK: (throwing John to the side and approaching Einstein) I will have that power! (Einstein freezes him)

CRICHTON:(to Staleek) Humbling, ain't it? (he faces Einstein)

EINSTEIN: Returning here was wrong.

CRICHTON: I have to protect the people I love. And you owe me for putting that crap in my head.

EINSTEIN: It may soon be prudent to remove it.

CRICHTON: Amen. I wanna be blond again. (Einstein disappears and Staleek is unfrozen)

STALEEK: You truly cannot create wormhole weapons.

CRICHTON: We should get back before Rygel damages your wife.

(cut to the cell on the Decimator: Aeryn is pacing the floor)

AERYN:(to Sikozu) Absolutely not.

SIKOZU: Our best opportunity is when or if Crichton walks through those doors, we must try to escape!

AERYN: Not without my child.

SCORPIUS: A disagreement past its time. (the door opens, revealing a returning John)

SIKOZU: You should be dead.

CRICHTON: And how was your day? (moving aside with Aeryn and whispering) I saw wreckage on the way in.

AERYN: They killed Chiana and D'Argo.(there are tears in her eyes, and John closes his for a few seconds)

CRICHTON:(his voice is rough) Is Yondalao good to go?

AERYN:(pointing to Yondalao, who is still conversing with Stark) Apparently not.

CRICHTON: Well, Staleek's gonna give us Rygel.

SCORPIUS: You've traded ultimate power for an unborn offspring.

CRICHTON: No. I gave it to him. You know why? Because he's such a nice guy! But the funny thing is I don't have anything to give. (he's giving in to his anger) So, Chiana and D'Argo, me being chased around the galaxy for years, everything, it's all for nothing.

SIKOZU: Your ranting aside, we still have no way out.

AERYN:(touching John's shoulder to draw his attention) I wouldn't be so sure. (Yondalao's face is glowing purple and he seems to be concentrating, while Stark kneels at his feet)

(cut to Rygel's holding cell)

RYGEL:(to the Scarran nurse) You have to do something. It's time to transfer the baby.

SCARRAN NURSE:(she is filling her vicious-looking instrument with some fluid) When I am ordered. However, I can give you something to eliminate the pain completely.

RYGEL: Oh, that would be great. Hurry! (she tries to inject him with the substance, when Staleek's arm intercepts her and stop her motion)

SCARRAN NURSE: Aah!

STALEEK: Whose orders override mine?

SCARRAN NURSE: War Minister Ahkna. I had no choice. (the Emperor breaks her neck, then turns to Rygel)

STALEEK: You will die when I order it.

RYGEL:(panting) Okay.

(Staleek faces Ahkna: he's beyond angry)

STALEEK: If the Hynerian had died, my word is useless...

AHKNA: The Luxan stealth craft, I discovered and destroyed. The presence of Scorpius who has already betrayed you once, and the constant ability of these creatures to plague us with resistance. Add these up, and they should die for our own security.

STALEEK: Scorpius is a commander in our enemy's armada. Officer Sun a former pilot. Who knows what information may be coerced from them!

AHKNA: And I say it's not worth the risk.

STALEEK: Stop seeing Vitubian vipers in every shadow. (he grabs her face in his hand) And never countermand my orders again!

(cut to space, where D'Argo and Chiana are floating unprotected above a too-distant Moya: he tries to blow his breath inside her lungs, but it's clear it's hopeless and he holds her close. Cut back to the Decimator)

STALEEK: (marching Rygel inside the cell) Here, have him!

AERYN:(to Rygel) Did they do anything to you?

RYGEL: No.

STALEEK: This maintains my portion of the accord. Beyond this, I promise nothing.

STALEEK: War is our path. At the peace table, we know how we're viewed: brutish, ignorant.

YONDALAO: Then what greater victory than to prove them wrong? And without the loss of a single Scarran (he reaches to place his hand on Staleek's arm and soldiers move in to intercept him, but the Emperor stops them)...life.

STALEEK: I am listening. (they move toward the seats)

(cut to the Peacekeeper fleet: Maryk and Grayza are in their private quarters)

MARYK: Now you will tell me this one Human holds such fascination that Scorpius would desert, the Scarran emperor would pursue, and we would all tremble at the power of his magical wormholes. Did you not tell me Crichton was powerless? His doomsday weapon a myth?

GRAYZA: (she's preparing some kind of drink) That was my belief. This moment, however, is not without opportunity.

MARYK: Agreed. Knowing the emperor's whereabouts allows us to negotiate a peace proposal before our position becomes so eroded as to be laughable.

GRAYZA: Yes, my love. (she removes one of her earrings and drops it inside Maryk's glass, where if fizzes) Of course. It also gives us the opportunity to surprise the Scarran leader and decapitate his empire. The sudden chaos in their ranks might tip the balance.

MARYK: And if that fails? No, I will not be remembered by history as the commander under whom Peacekeeperdom fell.

GRAYZA: No, my love. (she gives him the glass, and he drinks) You will not. (Maryk starts to cough and holds his throat, as if in pain) Because despite your station, you are weak. (he falls to the floor: it's clear he's been poisoned) I say again that which I have said before. Death is preferable to subjugation under Scarran rule. They must be defeated. (Maryk dies)

JOTHEE: Chiana. (he looks toward a recovering D'Argo) Father. (D'Argo gets up and promptly throws a punch at his son: Jothee takes it in stride, preventing his men from harming D'Argo) Not quite the Luxan greeting, but...

D'ARGO: What are you doing here?

JOTHEE: Right now? Saving your life.

D'ARGO:(not very warmly...) Thanks.

CHIANA: Jothee, shouldn't we be running?

JOTHEE: Our concealment technology is three generations beyond yours. We could pull up beside 'em and they wouldn't know we're here.

D'ARGO: So, you're in command now.

LUXAN SOLDIER: He's a Kliva.

CHIANA: Kliva?

JOTHEE: Field officer.

LUXAN SOLDIER: Which means he's got brains. The rest of us just like to fight.

CHIANA: What are you doing here?

JOTHEE: We've been following the emperor for quite some time, now. And then, there you were. We gotta take the crown head out, but his ship is pretty well impenetrable.

D'ARGO: One would think. (he holds up a chip, which must contain the information he received from Chiana aboard Lo'la: connecting it to the ship's computer, he displays the Decimator's weak points)

JOTHEE: Is this accurate? Looks like we could take him out in four shots.

D'ARGO: Three.

(cut to the cell on the Decimator: everyone appears relaxed, some are even smiling - Stark is passing around collecting glasses on a tray)

SCORPIUS: Yes, that sounds quite reasonable.

CRICHTON: Absolutely. We're walking into Federationville here. You cross the T's. You dot the lower case J's, and we're good to go.

YONDALAO: Emperor, could you review the accord that you wish all of us to agree to?

STALEEK: Of course. At the core of the matter is the perception that Crichton can create wormhole weapons. If I propose an armistice to the Peacekeepers with Crichton by my side, (he places a companionable hand on John's shoulder) they will naturally assume he has bestowed a military edge upon the Scarran Empire.

SCORPIUS: The Grand Chancellor is no gambler. He would indeed choose peace over a war he knows he would lose.

STALEEK: Being benevolent, I will then propose an accord which favors us in mining rights and trade balance, whilst allowing complete self-rule of all Peacekeeper territories.

CRICHTON: And I'm out, right?

STALEEK: You shall be released upon the signing.

YONDALAO: And a great many lives will be saved by everybody sim...

(an energy shot takes Yondalao square in the face, throwing him backwards against the wall: everyone looks up in shock)

AHKNA: (entering with a guard detail and addressing Staleek) Do you really wish to broker peace with an enemy you are certain to destroy?

STALEEK: (as if waking from a dream) What is this?

YONDALAO:(he's dying, but he's still determined) It is the proper course of action.

STALEEK: If your kind has a prayer for the dying, fill your mind with it now that you may be comforted. (he leaves the room)

CRICHTON:(he grabs Starks, who's trying to get away from the dying Yondalao) Stark, you can! You're a Stykera. I've seen you do amazing things. When you pass someone over, you take what they know. Help him help us.

AERYN: Quickly before he dies.

STARK: No, I cannot!

CRICHTON: Aeryn, help me! (Aeryn joins him and they both bring a resisting Stark near Yondalao - Sikozu joins in their efforts)

STARK: No, no! No, no! (John removes the mask, and the purple energy of the dying Yondalao moves toward Stark, who screams in anguish. With something resembling an explosion, the transfer is complete and Yondalao dies, while the other are thrown off by the force of the blow) My mask! Don't touch me! (he fights them all off, replacing his mask and placing some distance between himself and them)

AERYN: What have we done?

CRICHTON: I don't know. Something good or something very bad. (from the other side of the room, Rygel moans loudly in pain)

AERYN:(running to him) Hey, hey. We're gonna have to transfer the baby now.

CRICHTON: Now?

AERYN: Can you remember what to do?

CRICHTON: I think so. You stay with him. Where's the transfer kit?

AERYN: Over there.

CRICHTON: Where?

AERYN:(pointing) There! (to Rygel) Breathe!

(in that moment, a mist starts to come out of some openings in the wall)

SIKOZU: It's gas.

CRICHTON: What? You gotta be kiddin' me!

SIKOZU: They're entombing us.

CRICHTON:(shouting through the door) Staleek, this is very unoriginal. What does this do?

SCORPIUS: Paralytic embalming agent.

AERYN: Stark. (she and John reach to the Stykera, who still fights them off)

SCORPIUS: Preserves living tissue without harming the brain. Scarrans use it on specimens they wish to dissect whilst they're still alive.